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Another Religion

by Groff Schroeder

Since the dawn of time, spontaneous abortion (“miscarriage”), defects, illness, inadequate finances or support etc. have created life and death medical necessities related to problem and unintended pregnancies. Today, numerous effective forms of birth control help to reduce both pregnancy and abortion. Planned Parenthood and other medical care providers provide not only various types of low cost preventative health care, but also reduced cost birth control - and between 2009 and 2017, participation in Colorado's pioneering LARC (long acting reversible contraception) experiment yielded a 35% decrease in birth rate and a 41% decrease in abortion for women ages 20 and 24 years, and a 50% decrease in birth rate and a 60% decrease in abortion for women between 16 and 19.

The limits to religious freedom

By Ken Burrows

The novel coronavirus pandemic has told us a lot about the origins of disease agents, infection risks, society’s response to an outbreak, and more. Less prominent in the headlines has been a separate but pivotal COVID-19 risk issue: the danger of allowing “religious freedom” claims to pose virus-related harm to others.

Goodbye Jan Brazill

Jan Brazill, a lifelong voice for women’s rights and for separation of church and state passed away on May 15th 2020 at the age of 93. Jan was a long-time member and enthusiastic supporter of the Freethinkers of Colorado Springs.

Respect for Whose Life?

by Jan Brazill

March 1, 2017

Our newly elected president has just rushed to reinstate the “Mexico City policy,” otherwise known as the “global gag rule.” This prevents non-governmental organizations working abroad from receiving federal funding for family planning if they perform abortions or even talk to their clients about abortion. (The rule applies even though clinics are prohibited from using US funds for abortions anyway.)

TAKING ACTION

by Jim "Hawk" Hawkins

We are aware of the urgencies facing our nation and the world. The American Humanist Association publishes resolutions on key issuesⁱ which address the critical issues of climate change, affirming human rights, fighting for voting rights and the equal rights amendment for women’s equality, and protecting ourselves (especially our children) from gun violence. Such urgencies cause a variety of responses from each of us, from indifference to protest to outright civic disobedience, and the activity of the people will range from apathy to activism.

Propaganda, Prejudice, and Pragmatism

by Groff Schroeder

It is documented fact that the United States is enduring ongoing, sophisticated enemy propaganda attack designed to divide the American people against ourselves and destroy our trust in the institutions of American government. Simultaneously, we face serious problems, including accelerating environmental degradation, unresponsive leadership, and the painful sequelae of centuries of systemic racial prejudice and violence. Meanwhile, global pandemic aids the forces attempting to destroy America from within.

God’s Words?

by David Eckert

     Many religious belief systems represent their gods as benevolent, omniscient, and omnipotent, and their religion's holy texts as "the word of God."

Fear, Faith, and Reason (edited)

by Groff Schroeder

Human bodies respond to threats trough the involuntary "stress response," a cascade of biochemical events that ready the body for "fight or flight" type activities. The release of adrenaline and other hormones increases muscle tone, pulse, respiration, and blood pressure in anticipation of physical exertion, and induces "tunnel vision" and hyper-vigilance that improve the ability to focus.

Triumph of Reason: the Vaccine

by Groff Schroeder

Living things are made of cells, highly complex, microscopic biochemical systems about one tenth the diameter of a human hair. Some organisms (like bacteria) exist as single cells, while complex organisms (like us) have multicellular biochemistry in which groups of cells work together. Bacteria can cause infectious diseases that interfere with nearby cells, clog up biological systems, and release toxins. Because bacteria are living things, chemicals that prevent them from reproducing (antibiotics) can overcome bacterial infections over time as individual bacteria eventually die off.

Humanist awakening

By Ken Burrows

The “Great Awakening” is a term used to describe the 18th century revival of religious activism and personal piety. It was often seen as a reaction to perceived Enlightenment secularism. Today a subtler “awakening” — a reversal of its namesake predecessor — is taking root as people drift away from religion. Surveys peg the U.S. percentage of people claiming “no religion” at about 25% and growing. The trend is most evident among younger age groups.

Some "Trial"

by Groff Schroeder

On July 27, 2016, a Candidate for President of the United States asked, "Russia, if you're listening..." on live television, requesting an enemy nation (to whom he apparently owes a great deal of money) to interfere in the election on his behalf. That particular nation was already engaged in a sophisticated propaganda attack on the United States designed to divide the American People against themselves and destroy the institutions of the American democratic republic. And Russia's dictator was listening and did interfere in the 2016 election in exactly the way he asked, and he became the 45th President of the United States. But that was just the first time he would ask a foreign nation for help getting elected - which is illegal under United States Code Title 52, Section 30121.

Colorado Frees Women

by Janet Brazill

Women are unique. Only they can reproduce their species. So they have been a necessary element since the beginning of time. And unfortunately, they have often been maintained for this function and little else.  The Christian Bible blames Eve (the first woman “created”) for what they call “original sin,” and because of this, all women must be subservient to men. Some religions still adhere to this denigrating idea.

For uncounted generations, humans have celebrated the winter solstice, the longest night of the year, when the tilt of the earth places us as far away from the sun as we ever get.

Science suggests the universe has existed for more than 13.7 billion years and the earth has existed more than 4.5 billion years, and that together, they have brought us to share this unique point in space and time.

Enjoy.

Freethinkers of Colorado Springs

Selective neutrality

By Ken Burrows

When the Supreme Court ruled in favor of allowing Colorado cake baker Jack Phillips to refuse, on religious grounds, to design a cake celebrating a same-sex marriage, it cited the Colorado Civil Rights Commission for violating “religious neutrality.” Although Phillips was harming others by discriminating against them in his business, the court found the Commission’s criticism of his religious reasoning to be the greater offense.